L*** De Man

With Arthur Tooth & Sons, London, 1943;
With Mallett, London;
There purchased by the present collector.

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com , an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. This painting has been fairly recently restored. The canvas has a synthetic lining. The paint layer is clean, varnished and retouched. The most notable factor to the condition is that in the center of the sky there is a horizontal tear running from left to right, entering the tallest mast of the largest ship directly above the sails and running further to the left. The restoration is not particularly good but is fairly confined to this area. There are some cracks in the lower sky which have also been retouched, but the retouching is quite carefully applied and does not stray beyond the boundaries of the damages to any degree. Having said this, there seems to be a remnant of slight dirt in the upper left and in other areas, and also slight abrasion in some of the finest details of the ships. All of this is to be expected in a picture of this period and detail. However a more focused campaign of retouching and a more accurate approach to this picture will produce better results. The lining, although not attractive when viewed on the reverse, is serviceable and can be retained.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

De Man was a Dutch artist who worked in England, arriving about the time of  Willem van de Velde the Younger's death in 1707.  He seems to have been based in Deptford on Thames where many of the ships he portrayed were based.  Here, the royal yacht Carolina is shown at starboard-quarter view flying the Union flag at the stern. A port-quarter view of the Carolina by De Man is in the collection of the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich.